a/n This chapter is dedicated to Tukiko Kinikia, who in her epic fashion, reviewed every single chapter of "Sing Like Me" and "Song Of Aether" in the space of a week! And of course, I need to thank as well as all my other dedicated, hard-core, readers and reviewers, including but not limited to:GaaraHinataWake , tobi-is-an-artist-too , naash, operagirl76 , dazynl8, maxridelover , MidniteCurse4Eternity , twinkletoast , uchiha.s . Thanks so much gang! Extra special thanx to uchiha.s who beta'd this chapter and who also gave me a much needed pep talk:) Thaaaaaaanks!

Also, sorry for the late post...I was going to post this as a double last weekend, but then this old lady was crossing the street with lots of groceries, and after I helped her carry them she invited me in for tea and cookies, but the cookies made me sleepy so I took a nap-

*Kakashi sensei steps in and bitch slaps author*

Um...sorry about that. Anyway, today's update is extra long... Enjoy the fic!

Chapter 5

Of Kimchi and Secrets

"What new thing can come, under the sun

When everything that ever was has already been done?"

This she said with a gentle sigh

As she picked Cats-Claw, Valerian and Wild Rye.

-Second Book of the Songs Of Akash, Verse V

"Sasuke? Are you still sleeping? Sasuke...? Sasuke!" Sakura unceremoniously dropped a drooling toddler on his chest. She sniffed as she neared his cheek to kiss him, scrunching up her nose in disgust. "Sasuke? Why, pray tell, are the ends of your hair charred? You smell like burned toast."

Sasuke moaned. "Don't ask." He tried to pull the covers back up over his head, but Takeo was in the way.

"Oh, come on."

"Training accident." Sasuke's late night spar with Yuki had definitely taken its toll on him. Though he had won the second bout (ha ha!), it been at a price: his hair was singed, he was pretty sure he had a dislocated shoulder, and strangely, he had no feeling in his left big toe. Worst of all, his favorite, softest silken scarf had been burned to a crisp in the battle. Between Takeo's teething and Yuki's temper, I'm going to have to go naked. The brats are ruining all my nice clothes.

Just as Sakura was about to leave, Sasuke continued, "Hey. Before you run off to heal strangers, I could use some help."

Sakura huffed, "I'm already late—"

"Either you can fix me now, or I can come with you to the hospital...and you can fix me there..." he explained dryly.

Sakura rolled her eyes and gathered green chakra in her hands. "Idiot, you've dislocated your shoulder— and you've broken a toe? What kind of training accident did you have?"

Big Sigh. "Yuki-chan," he gruffly muttered.

Sakura let out a low whistle. "That girl is a real terror. I'm so proud."

Sasuke had a few saucy replies to that in his head ("I think you're a bad influence on her, Sakura-chan." "Like mother, like daughter. You're both...Frightening." "Must be the maternal genetics.") but since he had sustained enough injuries in the past twenty-four hours, he bit his tongue. Obviously, he had been in error when he had thought Yuki took after him exclusively. Any idiot with (proverbial) eyes in their head could see that her temper was pure Haruno. He hadn't met Sakura's mother, but word was that she had been twice the live wire. Sasuke shuddered at that thought, but Sakura assumed that he was merely wincing in pain.

Sukura gathered her healing chakra and got to work on her bruised husband, muttering, "I'm glad you had time to spar with Yuki. Lord knows she needs an outlet... Hey, while I'm at it, let me work on your eyes too— otherwise you'll probably have another one of those blasted tension headaches before the day is out, and I don't want you bothering me at the hospital. I have enough work as it is."

Sasuke ignored Sakura's brusque statement and practically hummed as he relished the cool, soothing feel of her chakra on his brain.

"There now, all fixed up. Have a nice day with Takeo-chan, I'll see you tonight!"

"But you haven't even had any time—"

But by the time he had gotten the words out, Sakura, her cup of dark-roast coffee, and her magenta tote bag were all gone in a pink flash through the open bedroom window.

Sasuke sighed.

"For breakfast," he finished ruefully. So typical. Kami only knew why Sakura kept herself so busy at work. These days, it seemed like the only time she spent with any members of her family was when she taught medical jutsu to Saki at the hospital; but really, that fell under the category of 'work.' Sasuke sighed again. He knew Sakura tended to drown herself in work when she was avoiding something unpleasant in her emotional life, but being socially-awkward himself, he hadn't brought the issue up with Sakura just yet. Of course, it didn't help that she was hardly ever home.

But why would Sakura be unhappy? The answers eluded him. After all, Sakura was living out her dream as a driven career woman, while Sasuke stayed at home and took care of all the domestic duties. If anyone had a reason to be unhappy, it might have been Sasuke; though he never would have admitted to such a thing, not even to himself. But the fact remained that Sakura had become increasingly absent from their home life. In fact, Sasuke and Sakura hadn't been romantically intimate in quite some time. Sasuke thought back to their last sexual encounter, and he realized that it must have occurred over two months ago.

Of course, they had been married ten years. Their initial passion had definitely cooled over the last decade, but that was normal, wasn't it? Because who could honestly keep up with a 'fuck-a-day' regimen for a whole decade? As Takeo began rolling around on the bed and tangling himself in the covers, Sasuke shook his head. After their first two children had been born, Sasuke and Sakura's sex life had definitely declined, but they still managed to make love at least once a month. Sakura had always said that sex was important to keeping their marriage cohesive, and Sasuke couldn't argue with that.

But for some reason, after Takeo was born about a year and a half ago, they had let their once-a-month rule slide. At the time, Sasuke had had his hands full managing their three children, while Sakura's work had picked up considerably at the hospital. Between developing patents for painkillers, innovating new medical jutsu, taking on additional apprentices, and advising the Hokage in her spare time, it was a wonder Sakura made it home at all. And some nights, she didn't, and instead slept slumped over her desk at the hospital when she passed out from sheer exhaustion.

Sasuke wasn't sure if he should take it all personally or not— perhaps all of his musing were nothing but misguided conjectures?— but in any event, he decided to give Sakura space. In all likelihood, she would slow down at work eventually...right?

However, Sasuke was used to other people dictating the terms of his life: at first Naruto and Sakura when he returned to Konoha, and then eventually his own children. They had shaped the boundaries of his existence like a trench, and Sasuke was all too happy to be the water flowing into a predetermined container. He had proven again and again that he was no good at making decisions; thus, it seemed wiser to allow others to do so. Thus, he was at a loss in regards to Sakura, because he was rarely the one who made the rules or established boundaries in relationships. And while she orbited farther and farther away from him, he lacked the internal gravity to pull her closer again...

But then, Sasuke and Sakura had always acted like magnets. They had gone through cycles of repulsion, followed by times of attraction. Sasuke told himself to be patient, to uphold the stoic, seamless Uchiha exterior, but it was strange to be longing for Sakura's presence when he had spent so many of his formative years shunning her. Perhaps it was his own karma conspiring against him?

Sasuke shook his head to clear his jumbled thoughts before scooping up Takeo, who at this point was busy burying himself under Sakura's pillow.

"Peeeeeeky-boooo!" he squealed as he was carried off by his father to the kitchen.

"Otousan, I'm late to school! Again! Isn't breakfast ready? Did you make my lunch?" Saki huffed indignantly.

Yuki merely rolled her eyes and poured herself a cup of tea. "Hey, otousan."

"Good morning, trolls." He broke off two bananas from a large bunch on the counter and chucked one to each of his daughters. "Here's breakfast. Have a good day."

Saki began wailing about her dismal fate in life, while Yuki silently shoved her breakfast/lunch/banana into her bag.

Sasuke's head still hurt, despite the healing chakra he had received only moments ago. He was going to seriously need a nap (a long, long, glorious nap) this morning if he was to keep his promise to help Yuki train later that afternoon. Suddenly, he had an idea.

"Yuki-san? Would you mind walking with me to Naruto and Hinata's before you meet up with your team?" If he could get Hinata to watch the brat for a little while, he could catch up on his sleep. Time for a play-date.

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "Go there yourself."

Sasuke artfully hid his grimace. I would, except for the teeny tiny fact that I'm under house arrest and need an escort. Even if the escort is just you, troll. Problematically, Sasuke and Sakura had never revealed to their children that Sasuke was, indeed, under house arrest. Truth be told, the only one who kept Sasuke under house arrest in the first place was Sasuke himself. He insisted on finishing his sentence, even if it was, at this point, mostly for show. Time to cook up another excuse to have Yuki walk with me.

He retorted dryly, "But I enjoy your company so much. And besides, isn't Ryuu-kun on your team?" Yuki made a pained face, but Sasuke blithely continued, "You can pick him up on the way to the training grounds."

Yuki pursed her lips. "I suppose it isn't a bad idea to make sure Ryuu isn't tardy for once. Fine." She gave him a suspicious glance, but said nothing further.

Saki shouldered her schoolbag after shoving a bag of chips and instant ramen inside of it, calling behind her, "Later, otousan, Yuki-chan!"

Before Yuki could rip-her-a-new-one for using the dreaded 'c-word', Saki had already bolted out of the door. Groaning, Yuki downed the rest of her tea and picked up her bag. "Well? Coming?" Yuki intoned.

Sasuke nodded and followed his daughter out of the door; he carried Takeo-chan in his arms, who was busy gnawing on Sasuke's shoulder. Good thing I started wearing shirts with shoulder pads... Even if it was a fashion faux pas, it kept him from developing bruises from Takeo's terrible teething.

It was quiet on the way over to the Uzumaki residence. Yuki thoughtfully chewed on her banana while shooting Sasuke furtive, sideways glances. Finally, after about ten minutes of staring, Yuki cleared her throat and ventured, "So. Otousan. I actually need to stop off at the store really quick. You go on ahead. I'll meet you there."

Sasuke replied, oh-so-casually, "I'll come with you Yuki. I can pay for whatever it is you need."

"I'd prefer to go alone."

"I'd prefer to go with you."

"I'd prefer if you didn't." Yuki began walking away.

Sasuke was getting desperate. "You're going to leave your blind father to walk alone? I could be run over by a cart...or something." Oh gods. That sounded weak, even to Sasuke.

Yuki paused mid stride and retorted, "I need to buy...feminine items."

Sasuke blanched. "Feminine items?"

Yuki snorted and began walking away again.

"Wait! It's fine. I'll come...with you." Sasuke was beginning to sweat from the pressure; Takeo, on the other hand, was busy choking Sasuke with his scarf. Truly, raising children was hazardous to one's health.

Yuki crossed her arms over her budding chest and smirked. "Either you're agoraphobic— not likely, in my opinion— or there's another reason why you never go out in public alone. Because no normal father would accompany their daughter to buy feminine hygiene products."

Shit! It was a ruse! "What are you talking about? I go out by myself all the time," Sasuke replied as evenly as he could, glossing over the last part of Yuki's speech.

"Name one time. Because I can't think of any," Yuki cooly replied. Sasuke cursed to himself, Damn the photographic Uchiha memory.

Yuki smirked again and continued, "That's what I thought. Something is up. Tell me."

Sasuke sighed and took his progeny's elbow, forcing her to walk along with him. "Fine. But seeing as you're already late for your mission, I'll tell you this afternoon when we train. Ok?"

Yuki nodded, somewhat appeased. "Fine. But you will tell the truth, the whole truth, so help you— "

Sasuke sighed dramatically as he knocked on the Uzumaki's door. "Yuki, this is not a court of law. Regardless, I swear. I'll tell you everything later this afternoon."

It looked like Yuki was going to protest, but luckily Ryuu opened the door and saved him from further interrogation.

"Hey! Yuki-chan! You really do care!"

Yuki sent a punch in the direction of Ryuu's head, which he promptly dodged. Concussion averted... Sasuke thought with a grin as Yuki muttered,"I came to collect your sorry ass so you wouldn't be late. Again."

"Aw, Yuki-chan— "

Yuki growled and elbowed Ryuu painfully in the ribs, then dragged the boy along behind her as he gasped for air.

"Have a nice time kids!" Sasuke cheekily called after them. I wonder if Yuki-chan has a 'thing' for Ryuu-kun... he thought with no small amount of mirth. Because with kids this age, it was a fine line between flirting and inflicting bodily harm...

"Bye otousan. See you this afternoon," Yuki replied humorlessly over her shoulder.

As the two retreated in the distance, Sasuke's smile disappeared. He sighed ruefully; it seemed that his children were getting to be too smart for him. At least he had until this afternoon to think of a plan. Because in his current, sleep deprived, semi-charred state, he had not the foggiest idea of how to tell Yuki the 'whole truth.' So help me Kami indeed...

He was taken out of his anxious thoughts when a soft voice spoke behind him.

"Sasuke-san?" Hoshiko smiled up at him shyly. "Would you like to come in?"

"Hoo-shiii-kooooo! Hooo-shiiii-koooo!" Takeo cooed from his elevated position in Sasuke's arms.

Sasuke smiled and bowed politely, "Thank you. Is mom in?"

"Uh-huh! I'll take you to her."

"That won't be necessary Hoshiko-chan, I know you're already late for school."

Hoshiko blushed and picked up her school bag. "Ok, well, have a nice time I guess!" As the girl exited, Sasuke entered, closed the door behind her, and took off his shoes.

"Sasuke-kun? Is that you?" Hinata chimed from the main room.

"Uncle Sasuke's here? Yaaaaaay, Uncle Sasuke's come to pwaaay!" sang Sora, Naruto and Hinata's white-eyed, blonde-haired, three-year-old.

"So-wa! So-wa! Pway! Pway!" Takeo chorused back. Sasuke grinned and put the toddler down, who promptly began crawling towards his friend.

"Let me guess, you need me to watch your little pumpkin while you take a nap on the couch." It was not a question but a knowing statement. Hinata winked at him, knowing that he could sense her playful expression even without sight.

Sasuke bowed formally. "I've come to request a nap, Hinata-sama. You are correct. I am in desperate need of sleep."

Hinata giggled at that. "Takeo is no trouble at all." She looked over towards Sora and Takeo, and smiled: the two had gotten out Sora's dress-up clothes, and the young girl was clothing Takeo in a pink dress, fairy wings, and a hot pink feather boa, which made the latter sneeze very cutely when the feathers tickled his nose."Well, you know the way to the sofa. When should I wake you up?"

"Hmm..." Sasuke made a few calculations in his head. "Noon. I also need to ask your advice about something..."

"Are you sure you don't want to ask now?" Hinata inquired.

Sasuke shook his head. "I'm too much of a zombie to be able to comprehend life right now..."

Hinata laughed, the sound ringing like a cheerful wind-chime in the breeze, as Sasuke dragged himself into the parlor and promptly passed out on the couch.

When he finally woke, the afternoon sun was shining on his eyes most painfully, and a terrible smell assaulted his nose. It was as if someone had left garbage out to rot in the sun for a week. Wrinkling his nose, Sasuke rose very, very slowly and went to find out what time it was. As he sauntered over to the kitchen, he heard a chorus of very strange noises.

"Mush, mush, mush!" Hinata cheered in a sing-song voice.

"Mushy, mushy, gushy!" Sora repeated.

"Moo, moo, moo!" sang Takeo.

What in the world are they doing? Sasuke wondered, bemused. As he entered the kitchen, his delicate senses were assaulted even more violently by the stench. He pinched his nose and asked, in a nasal voice, "Hinata-chan? What are the kids making?" He was using his sensory technique, but all he could sense was that everyone was smooshing something in a big wooden bowl.

"Ah! It's kimchi making day today, and the kids are helping!" Hinata called cheerfully.

"Mushy, mushy, gushy!" called Sora.

"Moo-sey, moo-sey, goo-sey!" Takeo repeated.

Ah. So that delightful smell is partially fermented cabbage, radish, carrots, ginger, and garlic. Definitely a lot of garlic. Sasuke kept this revelation to himself and instead politely stated, "Ah."

"Da da hwelp! Da da hwelp!" Takeo asked.

Sasuke blanched. Da-da decidedly did not want to help. "Um...What time is it, Hinata-chan?"

Stifling a giggle, Hinata checked the clock. "Oh my goodness, I'm sorry! It's 2 pm."

Sasuke resisted the urge to smack himself. He only had one hour left until he had to meet his impending doom, otherwise known as Yuki the Interrogator. He sighed.

"Hinata-chan, do you think I could ask your advice about that certain something now?"

Hinata nodded as she began to transfer the putrid vegetables into the crock. "Of course. What's up?"

Sasuke sighed again; indeed, he seemed to be doing a lot of sighing these days. "It's Yuki. As you know, she is quite the perceptive one, and...she's on to the fact that I can't leave the house by myself."

Now it was Hinata's turn to sigh. "Oh Sasuke-kun, you should just take yourself off house arrest already... Don't you think you've suffered enough?"

Sasuke shook his head and softly replied, "Hinata-chan, please. I appreciate your concern... However, I only have four more years until I've served my sentence, and I intend to finish it. It is my duty."

"Forgive me." Hinata grimaced. This was an old topic of conversation, and she was not one to seek out confrontational topics. "So...you still haven't told the girls anything?"

Sasuke toed the floor, kicking an errant piece of carrot which proceeded to roll across the kitchen floor until it lodged itself in the grate of the heating vent. "Um... It's not that I've been avoiding it...it's just...well..."

"You've been avoiding it." Hinata nodded sagaciously, and set the full crock of kimchi on the counter. "Sora, can you be a big girl and help Takeo-chan wash his hands in the kid's bathroom?"

Sora puffed out her chest in pride. "Uh-huh, okaasan! Come on Takeo, washy washy time!"

"Wah-shee, wah-shee Sowa!"

Hinata smiled and placed a large rock over the lid of the crock before washing her own hands in the kitchen sink. After a moment of thoughtful silence, she finally spoke. "Just tell her the truth."

"Which...part of the truth?"

Hinata paused midway between sudsing up her hands to look straight at Sasuke. "All of it."

"She's only a child... "

"She's an adult now. And if you don't tell her, someone else is going to. And if that happens... it won't be pleasant." Hinata shook her head as she found a dry towel.

Sasuke sighed. "I'm such an idiot."

"Hmmm. Yes. But you're also a kind father. It will all work out for the best." Hinata wiped her hands dry and put a reassuring hand on Sasuke's shoulder. She was about to say more, but there was a loud knock at the door.

"Sorry Sasuke. Let me go get that." She looked at him sympathetically, than called out, "Hold on, coming!"

Sasuke shook his head, then used his senses to see who was at the door.

Was that a herd of canines outside that he was hearing?

Or was it a riot led by a pack of rabid wolves?

Hinata's fabulous kimchi recipe

ingredients: 1 large head of napa cabbage, 1 large carrot cut into thin wheels, 1 daikon radish cut into thin wheels, 2 cloves of garlic minced or mashed, 1 tsp freshly grated ginger, 1 tsp red pepper flakes, 1-2 probiotic capsules (optional), 1 TBS sea salt

Directions: Shred cabbage and mix throughly with salt and probiotic capsules. Add in vegetables and spices, mix well. Put into crock and weigh down with a rock

Alternative directions for when using mason jars instead of crocks: Shred cabbage and mix throughly with salt and probiotic capsules, mushing and mushing with hands until the cabbage is somewhat translucent and begins to water at the bottom of the bowl. Mix in vegetables and spices and place in mason jar, smooshing down firmly with your fist. Cap tightly with lid. Every morning for the next 3-7 days taste kimchi and smoosh down firmly with fist. It is done when it tastes sour and delicious! YUM!

a/n Dear Gods I love kimchi. Well, I'll do my best to update in a week or so...

BTW, if you see any mistakes, please let me know and I will fix them! Any comments, critiques, or questions would be much appreciated via your lovely review:)